Film listings for Movies in Mind
Friday 26th January, 9.00pm: An Angel at My Table
An Academy Award nominated film by Jane Campion that tells the true story of Janet Frame, the famed poet and novelist from New Zealand. Frame, a bubble haired redhead was wrongly diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teenager and sent to a mental hospital. Thankfully, her collection of short stories, The Lagoon, was published and that sped her exit from the hospital. Stunning cinematography, a moving and life affirming film!
Saturday 27th January, 9.00pm: Donnie Darko
The Director’s Cut of this modern cult classic. After a near fatal incident when a jet engine falls on his house teenager Donnie experiences weird hallucinations. Is it the onset of schizophrenia or an altered vision of reality? Jake Gyllenhaal leads an all-star cast including Drew Barrymore, Noah Wyle, Jena Malone, Patrick Swayze, and Mary McDonnell in the mesmerizing story that took audiences by storm. Book early to avoid disappointment!
Sunday 28th January, 9.00pm: The Snakepit
Interesting to see how attitudes change. In 1948 the Snakepit was a truly groundbreaking example of realistic cinema with a strong social conscience. In an Oscar nominated performance, De Havilland pulls out all the stops in this story of a woman committed to a mental hospital. The film argues for the better treatment of people with a mental illness but does not shy from showing the harsh realities in hospitals at that time.
Monday 29th January, 9.00pm: The Madness of King George
It's 1788 and the King, George III (Nigel Havers) is behaving oddly. His queen (Helen Mirren) notices his babbling and it worries her. "You're talking, dear." His commanding "what-what"s are replaced by tirades against old enemies. George was suffering from a rare physical illness whose symptoms mimic madness. Plots in court abound and the King is treated for madness and there is a plot to keep the unpopular Price Regent from gaining the throne. Adapted from Alan Bennett’s successful stage play!
Tuesday 30th January, 9.00pm: Through a Glass Darkly
Ingmar Bergman’s Through a Glass Darkly is a truly thoughtful and moving film about human nature and man's struggle with a higher power. A small family (dad, daughter, son, daughter's husband) vacation on a remote and lonely island. Over the course of their stay we discover that daughter (Harriet Andersson) is mentally ill and dad (Gunnar Björnstrand) is using her trauma as subject matter for his books. Naturally, this culminates in a disaster after the daughter and her husband (Max von Sydow) discover dad's journals. All time classic!
Wednesday 31st January, 9.00pm: Out of the Shadow
Documentary filmmaker Susan Smiley turns the camera on her own family to tell the story of her family’s struggle to deal with her mother’s schizophrenia. Never before screened in Ireland this 2004 USA film provides a real insight into the carers’ dilemmas negotiating between the needs to treat a family member with dignity and respect and the cold reality of healthcare provision. Great documentary!
Thursday 1st February, 9.00pm: A Page of Madness
A legendary silent Japanese film that has been much written about in academic media studies texts. A tale of the old seaman attempting to obtain the release of his wife from a mental asylum where she has been confined since trying to kill herself and her baby. Made in 1926, and rediscovered in 1971. A stylized study of asylum inmates that draws much from Kabuki theatre. For students’ of film!
Book online
